Tell Walmart to Stop Rape and Torture of Young Women in its Factories
Please tell Wal-Mart, Hanes, Target, Macy’s, Lands’ End, Kohl’s and Jones Group to immediately end the sexual abuse, rape, torture, and beatings of young women guest workers at the Classic factory in Jordan.
We demand that the companies:
1) Immediately remove all serial rapists, especially Anil Santha and Priyantha, from the Classic factory;
2) Pay significant compensation to the rape victims for the damages done them;
3) Ensure that independent and highly respected non-governmental women’s rights organizations from Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have complete access to monitor factory conditions;
4) Guarantee that there will be no retaliation against any worker for speaking the truth about factory conditions;
5) Ensure that the false charges against the internationally respected human rights advocate, Mr. Rafiq Alam, must be immediately dropped;
6) If Classic refuses to strictly enforce the worker’s rights laws in the U.S.-Jordan Free Trade Agreement, their sweatshop garments should be prohibited from entering the U.S.
Go to the Classic-Jordan Campaign page for a full list of reports, action alerts, news articles, testimony videos and transcripts related to this case.
We demand that independent, highly credible women’s and worker rights NGOs from the workers’ own countries—several of which have worked together with the Institute for Global Labour and Human Rights—be allowed to enter Jordan to conduct a thorough investigation of the women’s rights violations at Classic. The meetings must be held in a safe location where company spies cannot intimidate the young women workers. Under these conditions, we believe that many young women rape victims will come forward.
Also, U.S. companies must insist that serial rapists, Anil Santha and Priyantha, not be allowed to return to the Classic factory. If he does, we will actively press our friends, family and communities not to purchase Wal-Mart, Hanes, Target, Macy’s, Lands' End, Kohls and Jones Group garments made in Jordan.
Moreover, you must ensure that the false charges against the internationally respected human rights advocate, Mr. Rafiq Alam, must be immediately dropped.
Finally, while we can never undo the torture and suffering these young women have endured, we expect you to pay very significant compensation given the damages these rape victims have suffered over the course of years. It is imperative that these women be able to return with dignity to their families in Sri Lanka.
The Classic group of factories in Jordan must finally be brought into compliance with Jordanian law and the labor rights provisions of the U.S.-Jordan Free Trade Agreement.
Some of your executives must have young daughters the same age as the young Sri Lankan rape victims. We appeal to you, stop the abuse.
Sincerely,